Mobile Laboratory Reveals the Circulation of Dengue Virus Serotype I of Asian Origin in Medina Gounass (Guediawaye), Senegal

Abstract

With the growing success of controlling malaria in Sub-Saharan Africa, the incidence of fever due to malaria is in decline, whereas the proportion of patients with non-malaria febrile illness (NMFI) is increasing. Clinical diagnosis of NMFI is hampered by unspecific symptoms, but early diagnosis is a key factor for both better patient care and disease control. The aim of this study was to determine the arboviral aetiologies of NMFI in low resource settings, using a mobile laboratory based on recombinase polymerase amplification (RPA) assays. The panel of tests for this study was expanded to five arboviruses: dengue virus (DENV), zika virus (ZIKV), yellow fever virus (YFV), chikungunya virus (CHIKV), and rift valley fever virus (RVFV). One hundred and four children aged between one month and 115 months were enrolled and screened. Three of the 104 blood samples of children <10 years presented at an outpatient clinic tested positive for DENV. The results were confirmed by RT-PCR, partial sequencing, and non-structural protein 1 (NS1) antigen capture by ELISA (Biorad, France). Phylogenetic analysis of the derived DENV-1 sequences clustered them with sequences of DENV-1 isolated from Guangzhou, China, in 2014. In conclusion, this mobile setup proved reliable for the rapid identification of the causative agent of NMFI, with results consistent with those obtained in the reference laboratory’s settings.

Field Deployment of a Mobile Biosafety Laboratory Reveals the Co-Circulation of Dengue Viruses Serotype 1 and Serotype 2 in Louga City, Senegal, 2017

“…To overcome this gap on differential diagnosis, capabilities are urgently needed and constitute a critical step in assessing the incidence of dengue fever in Africa. A recent study conducted on aetiologies of non-malarial febrile illnesses using a mobile laboratory, based on recombinase polymerase amplification (RPA), allowed the molecular detection of three sporadic of DENV-1 cases in the suburb of Dakar [ 23 ]. Also, a previous study conducted during the DENV-3 urban epidemic in Senegal in 2009 revealed that the Louga region had a high density of Ae.…”

“…The samples were shipped to the WHOCC for arboviruses and haemorrhagic fever viruses at the Institut Pasteur de Dakar (IPD) to investigate a probable arboviral etiology. RNA was extracted from sera and tested for 5 arboviruses including dengue virus (DENV), chikungunya virus (CHIKV), yellow fever virus (YFV), Rift Valley fever virus (RVFV), and Zika virus (ZIKV) by qRT-PCR [ 23 ] from which only DENV gave a positive result.…”

Multifoci and multiserotypes circulation of dengue virus in Senegal between 2017 and 2018

“…Of note, all patients were retrospectively interviewed in the context of a sentinel febrile illnesses surveillance. At the central laboratory, collected sera were processed immediately for several arboviruses and haemorrhagic fever viruses as DENV, CHIKV, YFV, ZIKV, RVFV, CCHF by real time RT-PCR using a protocol described by Dieng and colleagues [ 25 ]. Aliquots of sera samples were also stored at − 80 °C for additional analysis (isolation and/or molecular characterization).…”

Origin and Spread of the Dengue Virus Type 1, Genotype V in Senegal, 2015–2019

“…Since then, no studies reported isolation of this serotype. In 2015, a study on malaria in children less than 10 years old allowed for the detection of three DENV-1 cases in Guediawaye (Medina Gounass), in the suburb of Dakar [ 21 ]. This was followed two years later by an outbreak, mainly of DENV-1, in Louga city with 131 confirmed cases (submitted paper).…”